Under international pressure The Two Vice News journalists freed from Turkish jail

September 3, 2015 By administrator

Two Vice News journalists arrested earlier this week in Turkey’s southeast on charges of having links to a terrorist organization have been released, a Turkish government source told the Hürriyet Daily News on Sept 3.

The two British journalists, correspondent Jake Hanrahan and cameraman Philip Pendlebury, and their Turkey-based assistant were detained last week in Diyarbakır, the main city in Turkey’s mostly Kurdish southeast, where renewed fighting has killed scores of people.

A court ordered the three formally arrested late on Aug. 30 on charges of aiding a terror organization. All three have rejected the accusation.

Although the Aug. 27 tipoff that led to the Aug. 28 detention of the two journalists claimed they had helped the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group, the court issued the ruling for their arrest on suspicion they had supported the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the southeastern Mardin, Şırnak and Diyarbakır, provinces.

The abbreviations and English translations of organizations linked to the PKK written in a notebook were mentioned among the evidence seized by the police in the arrest of the journalists.

Turkish authorities had transferred the arrested journalists to a prison more than 500 kilometers (300 miles) away from their lawyers and the courthouse where they face trial, a lawyer said Sept. 3.

Activist electrical Yerevan sentenced to 6 months in jail

August 10, 2015 By administrator

Civil activists against rising electricity prices perceive the sentencing of one of them as a “message” addressed to each of them.

A court in Yerevan on Thursday acknowledged Narek Hakobyan, one of the activists who organized protests in front of the building of the regulatory Public Utilities Commission, guilty of having used violence against a policeman during a brawl. He sentenced to six months in prison.

The prosecution accused the young man of inflicting an injury to one of the policemen beating them kicking. Hakobian denied, saying it was even physically incapable of attacking a police officer.

Hakobian argued that the verdict was based on the testimony of three police officers, while the court found no “credible” testimony demonstrators who were also witnesses to the events.

The activist, who has been detained pending the hearing of his appeal to a higher court, said that the sentence of the court is trying to intimidate not only them but also other activists who continue to organize protests against rising electricity prices.

“When someone is sent to prison under an article of the Criminal Code for participating in a rally and did something in it, it is clear that this person and his fellow activists will feel some pressure “he denounced.

The civil rights activist Argishti Kivirian, which has itself been the subject of a number of lawsuits and litigation after taking part in demonstrations, believes that the court decision against Hakobian is a “revenge” of authorities.

“By sentencing this young man, they send a message to other active citizens, saying. ‘If you continue, the same can happen to you”

Monday, August 10, 2015,
Claire © armenews.com

Journalism in Turkey: journalist Baransu is in jail, EMRE USLU in exile, Taraf is under intense pressure.

August 9, 2015 By administrator

EMRE USLU
e.uslu@todayszaman.comEMRE USLU

Sümeyye assassination lie: Why I am a target; what was the goal say USLU.

The news about an assassination plot to kill President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s daughter Sümeyye turned out to have no substance. It was very obvious from the very beginning that the news was simply a fabrication. A legal investigation is still under way regarding the issue. All the other allegations printed by the pool media — a term referring to the pro-government media — and all the investigations launched by project judges and prosecutors appointed by the Justice and Development Party (AKP) are likewise just fabrications.
The real motivation behind the cases launched against me and slander suggesting my involvement in an alleged assassination plot against Sümeyye Erdoğan is because I exposed some operations by the National Intelligence Organization (MİT), some of which could be considered illegal. I, the Taraf newspaper and journalist Mehmet Baransu, who have dared to write about these issues since 2012, were already a target. Now, Baransu is in jail, I am in exile and Taraf is under intense pressure. I think we have been targeted because we wrote about the following issues in which we think MİT is involved and are for the benefits of the AKP rather than the interests of the country.
1) The information that the intelligence that led to the killing of 34 civilians near Uludere by Turkish warplanes came from MİT. 2) The fact that Turkey will turn into an intelligence state. 3) The fact that the settlement process launched with the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to resolve the Kurdish issue was a deception aimed at keeping Kurds busy until the general election. 4) The fact that an alleged assassination plot to kill Sümeyye Erdoğan — that was allegedly cancelled when it was exposed — was actually fake. 5) The trucks that were sent to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and al-Qaeda. 6) The weird relationship established with Iran, some elements of which were exposed in the Dec. 17 and 25 corruption dossier in 2013.
The government put pressure on Taraf, jailed Baransu by finding other excuses for his imprisonment and launched slanderous accusations and conspired against me for writing about these issues, which everyone is talking about to some extent today because we brought them to the nation’s agenda.
One of the conspiracies leveled against me was a claim of my involvement in an assassination plot to kill Sümeyye Erdoğan. The reason why this claim was brought forward was this: At that time, the government was trying to obtain a Red Notice about me, which would enable to it request my extradition from the United States because all the other allegations against me were full of nonsense and politically motivated, so it was impossible for them to ask for my extradition from the United States according to the laws of this country. In order to ask my extradition from the United States, the launch of a case against me because I had expressed my political views was not sufficient. For such a move, the only thing needed was my involvement in a criminal activity like an assassination plot against someone.
That’s why they made up the claim about my involvement in an assassination plot against Erdoğan’s daughter. If those who were involved in forging documents to prove their claims had done their jobs better, the government would have asked my extradition after issuing a Red Notice based on those news reports.
As a matter of fact, as if he had no other work to do, the Turkish ambassador to Washington once told US officials — based on news reports in the pro-government Turkish media — that “Emre Uslu and members of the Gülen movement [a faith-based movement inspired by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen] even get involved in assassination plots against Erdoğan’s children. Don’t give any support to them.” This may seem unbelievable to you, but I have confirmation of the accuracy of these statements from many US senators, members of congress and State Department officials. Other journalists have also written about it. That conspiracy was published in the pro-government media to provide grounds for the lies to be told by Turkish embassy officials in the US and other Western countries.

Why Umut Oran and me?

The reason is the famous phone conversation between Erdoğan and his son Bilal in which Erdoğan asks Bilal to “zero” the money in his house, following the public revelations of a corruption scandal on Dec. 17, 2013. When those recordings were revealed, Erdoğan said they were fabricated and a montage. I, on the other hand, argued that it was pretty easy to prove if the tapes were fake or otherwise without requiring reports or voice analysis. I simply said: “In those records, Erdoğan told Bilal that he sent Sümeyye to İstanbul. If this tape is fake, then publish the records to see if Sümeyye traveled from Ankara to İstanbul. If she traveled at the time mentioned in the tape, then the records are authentic. If not, then the tape is fake.” I wrote columns and made comments where I raised this argument to put an end to the debate.
That is the reason why they invented a plot involving me and Oran. If the documents they manufactured had not turned out to be fake, they would have said: “Emre Uslu already called for the publication of Sümeyye Erdoğan’s travel records and Oran released them. They were following Sümeyye as part of their assassination plot.”
They resorted to such a conspiracy in order to cover up the US dollars they shamelessly zeroed. However, facts have a habit of coming to light sooner or later. Today is such a time.

Source: ZAMAN

Erdoğan’s through Turkish sculptor Aksoy 56 month in Jail. for Building statue symbolizing goodwill between Armenia & Turkey

June 22, 2015 By administrator

Mehmet Aksoy, the sculptor

Mehmet Aksoy, the sculptor who was awarded TRY 10,000 (USD 3,750) in damages by a court in March after President Erdoğan had his sculpture torn down, is now on trial for 4 years, 8 months in prison over insulting Erdoğan after having described the money he was paid as ‘dirty money.’

Asked on what he would be spending the TRY 10,000 (USD 3,750) in damages he was to be paid by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan during an interview, sculptor Mehmet Aksoy responded: “I would never make a sculpture with dirty money.”

In retaliation to Aksoy’s comment, Erdoğan has filed a criminal complaint against the sculptor on the grounds that he insulted the president. The indictment prepared by the Press Crimes Bureau states that Aksoy implied that the president’s earnings were illegitimate and demands a prison sentence of up to 4 years, 8 months for the sculptor.

In his defense testimony, Aksoy claimed that the point of his statement had not been to insult the president, “Throughout my professional career I have sculpted nearly 10 tons of stone. What I do is very labor-intensive. My words were not meant to insult the president. I meant that this money just fell in my lap and was not money earned through any toil and sweat.”

In March a court had awarded Aksoy TRY 10,000 (USD 3,750) in damages for an insult case he had launched against President Erdoğan demanding TRY 100,000. The court had found Erdoğan guilty of insulting the sculptor Mehmet Aksoy over an incident in 2011 when the president called Aksoy’s statue symbolizing goodwill between Turkey and Armenia a “monstrosity.”

The comments by Erdoğan, then prime minister, came during a visit to the northeastern city of Kars. “They put a monstrosity there, next to the tomb of [scholar] Hasan Harakani,” Erdoğan had said during his January 2011 visit, “It is impossible to think that such a thing should exist next to a true work of art.”

Former Culture and Tourism Minister Ertuğrul Günay had defended Erdoğan at the time, saying that the prime minister had not used monstrosity in reference to the statue, which Erdoğan denied, “No, I meant it in reference to the statue.”

Erdoğan went on to express his hope that the mayor of Kars, also hailing from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), would “do what is necessary” before the prime minister’s next visit. The statue was taken down on June 14, 2011 by the Kars Municipality.

Sculptor Aksoy strongly criticized Erdoğan’s comments, saying his work carried a message of peace and friendship, and filed a lawsuit against Erdoğan for his insult to the statue.

In an unorthodox move last year, the Turkish Language Association (TDK), the official governing body of the Turkish language, declared that the word “monstrosity” (ucube) was not an insult and did not have negative connotations.

Report BGNNews.com | Istanbul

Under Erdogan dictatorship Journalist Baransu faces 52 years in jail for coverage of MGK report

June 4, 2015 By administrator

Journalist Mehmet Baransu was arrested early in March on charges of obtaining classified state documents. (Photo: Today’s Zaman, Kürşat Bayhan)

Journalist Mehmet Baransu, who was indicted for publishing classified documents from a 2004 National Security Council (MGK) meeting during which council members had discussed an action plan targeting the faith-based Gülen movement, is facing a prison term of 52 years, with the first hearing of his trial taking place at an İstanbul court on Wednesday.

The MGK document dated Aug. 25, 2004 persuades the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government to implement a series of measures to curb the activities of the Gülen movement, also known as the Hizmet movement. It advises the government to adopt legal measures that would impose harsh penalties on Gülen-affiliated institutions.

Immediately after Baransu’s report was published in the Taraf daily on Nov. 28, 2013, the Prime Ministry, the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and the MGK filed a joint criminal complaint against the daily and Baransu for revealing confidential state documents. The complaint immediately turned into an investigation into the journalist, with Baransu facing charges of acquiring confidential documents crucial to state security, revealing information that is forbidden from being publicized and political and military espionage.

The first hearing of the trial was held at the Anatolia 10th High Criminal Court on Wednesday. Baransu, who is currently under arrest in Silivri Prison as a result of another investigation, did not attend the hearing.

Baransu was arrested by the İstanbul 5th Penal Court in March over documents he had submitted to prosecutors regarding the Sledgehammer (Balyoz) coup plot against the government in 2010.

Since November 2013, Taraf has published several confidential documents suggesting that the ruling AK Party and MİT have been profiling individuals linked to various religious and faith-based groups, mainly the Gülen movement, inspired by Turkish-Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen. The party confirmed the authenticity of the documents but argued that no action was taken to implement the policy prescriptions indicated therein.

In the indictment, the prosecutor’s office said although the entire contents of the Aug. 25, 2004 MGK meeting was required to be kept confidential, Baransu covered it on the front page of the newspaper, thus openly violating laws that provide a shield of secrecy for MGK meetings and documents.

In addition to Baransu, Taraf’s then-managing editor Murat Şevki Çoban is also implicated for his role in allowing Baransu’s story to be published. Çoban is also facing a prison term of 52 years.

Delivering his defense statement, Çoban said the report should be interpreted within the scope of press freedom. Stating that the exposure of a crime does not constitute a crime, Çoban sought his acquittal.

In the meantime, Baransu testified to a prosecutor at the İstanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan on Thursday based on a complaint by Esat Burak Uzundere, the user of pro-government Twitter troll account Esat Ç, known for posting insulting and inflammatory messages targeting people who do not support the AK Party.

Uzundere’s complaint was based on a Twitter post by Baransu on him on the grounds that Baransu had violated his privacy.

In one of his earlier tweets, Baransu revealed Esat Ç’s real identity as Uzundure, which was later confirmed by a court, and exposed his link to the AK Party.

Meanwhile, Baransu’s lawyer and family members were disappointed and upset that the journalist was taken to Çağlayan on Thursday, the only day that they are allowed to have an open visit.

Baransu’s lawyer Sercan Sakallı said the journalist had been taken to the courthouse while his family was waiting for an open visit with him in Silivri.

As he was being taken to courthouse, Baransu spoke to reporters waiting in the corridors of the courthouse, stating he has been kept in isolation for 98 days and that he is preparing his defense under difficult circumstances in prison.

The prosecution of journalist for their work or because of their criticisms of the government or President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has become almost a daily occurrence in Turkey, with dozens of them facing charges of insulting a state official or conducting terrorist propaganda.

Most recently, Cumhuriyet Editor-in-Chief Can Dündar is facing an aggravated life sentence as a result of a criminal complaint filed by Erdoğan on Tuesday for the publication of images that prove that arms were transferred to Syria by MİT.

The images contradict the government’s earlier claim that the trucks were only carrying humanitarian aid to Turkmens in the war-torn country.

Last week, journalist Erkam Tufan Aytav, who works for Bugün TV, testified to İstanbul Deputy Chief Public Prosecutor Fuzuli Aydoğdu as a suspect at the İstanbul Courthouse. Aytav did not give any information about the content of the investigation because it was confidential.

On the same day, another journalist, Aytekin Gezici, was also in court at the first hearing of a trial launched against him over charges of insulting President Erdoğan, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç and former Justice Minister Bekir Bozdağ on social media.

In addition, journalists Mirgün Cabas, Koray Çalışkan and Banu Güven as well as TV host Pelin Batu were summoned by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office last week to testify as part of an investigation into their social media posts regarding the killing of a public prosecutor during a hostage crisis at the İstanbul Courthouse on March 31. The journalists are accused of conducting propaganda for a terrorist organization in their tweets on the day the prosecutor was killed.

Journalists facing legal action in Turkey today are just not limited to these figures, with dozens more who are either in prison or prosecuted.

Samanyolu Broadcasting Group General Manager Hidayet Karaca was taken into custody on Dec. 14, 2014 as part of a government-backed police operation. Karaca was later arrested and remains in prison on suspicion of being a member of an armed organization. The charges against him are based on a fictional TV series that was broadcast a few years ago.

Sedef Kabaş, a TV presenter, is facing a prison sentence of up to five years for posting a tweet about a corruption probe involving high-profile individuals.

Source: Zaman

EU mission judges jail 11 ex-Kosovo Turkish Albanian guerrillas for war crimes

May 27, 2015 By administrator

EU judges in Kosovo sentenced 11 former Kosovo Albanian guerrillas to prison terms on Wednesday for war crimes committed during Kosovo’s 1998-99 uprising. Judges from the EU police and justice mission said atrocities were committed against Kosovar civilians held in a camp run by the then-Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), which fought against Serbian forces. The charges in the two trials also related to the killing in 1998 of a Serbian police officer and a Kosovo Albanian civilian. Two of those convicted were close to ex-Prime Minister Hashim Thaci, Reuters said.

Turkish anchorwoman faces 5 years in jail for tweet

January 17, 2015 By administrator

Sedef Kabaş faces up to five years in prison.

Prosecutors seek up to five years of imprisonment for Turkish journalist and anchorwoman Sedef Kabaş for her tweet in which she called on citizens not to forget the name of the judge who dropped the Dec. 17, 2013 corruption probe that involved high-profile names and former Cabinet members.

An indictment has been prepared by the prosecutors on charges of “targeting people involved in the fight against terrorism and making threats,” which is punishable with jail time from one-and-a-half years to five years.

“Do not forget the name of the judge who decided not to pursue the proceedings in the Dec. 17 probe,” Kabaş tweeted. She was referring to a massive graft probe which was officially dropped on Dec. 16 when the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor’s Office rejected an objection to its decision to not pursue proceedings in the case.

Kabaş was detained on Dec. 30 at her house and was released after testifying before a prosecutor.

“I believe in the rule of law. I believe there still people who have faith in rule of law,” Kabaş said then, adding that her tablet, computer, and mobile phone were also seized by the police from her house.

January/17/2015

Turkey: A famous journalist facing jail for his book on the revolt Gezi

June 17, 2014 By administrator

June 17, 2014 opened the third hearing of the trial against journalist Erol Özkoray for his book “The phenomenon Gezi”. The book published in July 2013 provides a socio-political analysis of the protest movement “Occupy Gezi” brutally suppressed by security forces during the summer of 2013. Not less than 153 journalists were injured and 39 others arrested while covering the protests.

Erol Özkoray is accused of “insult” against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for a chapter identifying various slogans and graffiti drawn on the walls of Istanbul at the time of troubles. Under Article 125 of the Criminal Code, the journalist faces an aggravated one year to 32 months in prison for “insulting a representative of the State” sentence. The trial began March 20, 2014 before the Criminal Court of Istanbul.

“One year after the protests, the authorities continue to criminalize the movement Occupy Gezi ‘and its news coverage, laments Johann Bihr, office manager Eastern Europe and Central Asia Reporters Without Borders. By attacking a celebrity Erol Özkoray figure, they send a clear warning to all civil society. “

“It is unacceptable that a journalist facing jail for what he has done that report. We ask the dropping of charges and an immediate release of journalist. This case reiterates the urgency to overhaul the Turkish legislation, including decriminalizing libel and insult. “

The indictment signed by the prosecutor, Hasan Bölükbasi criticizes Erol Özkoray have quoted in his book slogans such as: “Do not be a donkey, listen to the people”, “You are disgraced resigns, “or even” Tayyip, it is not your fault if you have been born. “ Co-author of the book, Nurten Özkoray, is meanwhile not continue.

Femen activists face jail time in Turkey for ‘ban Erdogan’ protest

June 6, 2014 By administrator

Two members of the women’s movement Femen are facing jail time in Turkey for a protest against Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, The Huffington Post said, citing local reports.

The topless activists briefly disrupted municipal elections in March when they entered a polling station in Istanbul, where the prime minister was expected to vote. With “Ban Erdogan” written across their breasts, the two women stood on a table and yelled out the slogan to protest the criticized leader’s reign.

The Femen members were arrested after the stunt and detained by Turkish police. Annie Assouan, 24, and 26-year-old Elvire Duvelle-Charles — both reportedly French citizens — are now facing between one and three years behind bars for the brazen public protes